Adjustments
Route: /org/resource/bills?tab=adjustments · Permission: Modify Generated Bills
1. What an adjustment is
A signed correction to a bill's total, with a mandatory comment. It does not touch a time log, a rate or a task — it adds a line to the bill saying "and also this".
That design is deliberate: the drilldown stays a faithful record of what was actually logged, and every departure from it is visible as its own entry with a reason attached.
| Adjustment | Editing a time log | Cancelling the bill | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Changes the logs | No | Yes | Releases them |
| Changes the bill total | Yes | No | Removes the bill |
| Needs a reason | Yes — enforced | No | No |
| Reversible | Only by another adjustment | — | — |
2. Where an adjustment sits
3. Adjusting a bill — step by step
Both fields are required, and the drawer refuses to submit with either blank. The amount is a plain decimal — prefix it with a minus sign to reduce the bill.
The comment is the only place the reason is ever recorded, so write it for someone who was not in the room when the decision was made.
Step 1 · Open the drawer
Adjust on the selected bill. It is present only with Modify Generated Bills.
Step 2 · Enter an amount and a comment
Both are required:
Please provide both amount and comment
The amount is a decimal. A negative amount reduces the bill — a discount, a write-off, a correction for over-logged time. A positive one adds.
Nothing else records why a bill differs from its logs. Six months later the comment is the entire audit trail, so write it for someone who was not there.
Step 3 · Submit
Reports Adjustment added successfully, then reloads the bill so the header totals and the
drilldown reflect the new figure. Failure reports Failed to add adjustment.
Step 4 · Review the history
The Adjustments History tab lists every adjustment on the bill.
4. Field reference
| Field | Control | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amount | Decimal | ✅ | Negative reduces the bill |
| Comment | Text | ✅ | The only record of why |
What is not validated
| Not checked | Consequence |
|---|---|
| A minimum comment length | A comment of . satisfies the requirement |
| Whether the total goes negative | A large negative adjustment is accepted |
Adjustments against a paid bill | Nothing prevents adjusting an already-paid bill |
| Any approval | An adjustment applies immediately |
An adjustment applies the moment it is submitted, by anyone holding Modify Generated Bills — no second pair of eyes.
It also cannot be deleted. A mistaken adjustment is corrected by adding an equal and opposite one, which leaves both on the record. That is honest, and it means the history can be longer than the number of real corrections.
5. The admin contract
| Prerequisite | Without it |
|---|---|
| View Resource Billings | No access to the screen |
| Modify Generated Bills | The Adjust button is absent |
| An existing bill | Nothing to adjust |
It lets someone change what a client is billed, with no approval and no upper bound. Treat it as a finance permission rather than a project one, and grant it to as few people as the work allows.
6. Downstream
| Effect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bill total | Changes immediately |
| Statement PDF | Reflects the adjusted total |
| Reconciliation | Billed against logged now differs by the adjustments |
| Cancelling the bill | Deletes every adjustment |
The cancellation dialog says so: "All adjustments will be deleted." Regenerating the period produces a clean bill, and every correction has to be reapplied from memory.
Export or note the adjustments before cancelling.
7. Don't confuse this with…
| Thing | Where | Why it is different |
|---|---|---|
| Adjustment (this page) | The bill | A signed correction with a reason |
| Editing a time log | The task | Changes the underlying record; needs a regenerated bill |
| Cancel Billing | The bill | Removes the bill and releases the logs |
| Rate change | Project billing settings | Affects future bills only |
| Timesheet rejection | Approvals | Corrects hours before they are ever billed |
An adjustment is right for a commercial decision — a discount, a goodwill credit. For plain wrong hours, correcting the time log and regenerating the bill leaves a cleaner record than a correcting line.
8. Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Cause |
|---|---|
| No Adjust button | Missing Modify Generated Bills |
Please provide both amount and comment | One of the two is empty |
| An adjustment cannot be removed | They are permanent — add an opposite one |
| Adjustments vanished | The bill was cancelled |
| The drilldown total differs from the bill | That difference is the adjustments |
| A paid bill was adjusted | Nothing prevents it |
Related
- Drilldown — what the adjustments are adjusting
- Resource Bills overview — cancellation and its consequences